29 June 2010
Jitters shoot the mother of the bride
In preparation for our new web site launch we decided to do a photo shoot of all our mother of the bride and groom outfits so we can put them all on-line and let mums see that we haven't got a load of frumpy old mother of the bride and groom dresses!
14 June 2010
Flying & buying
I feel like my feet haven't touched the ground in the last 6 weeks. We have been on a buying trip to Barcelona to choose the new Pronovias dresses for 2011.
11 May 2010
A Stitch in Time
If you’re looking for a dress for next year then please please order in good time. It’s lovely to have lots time for all your fittings and alterations, then there's no stress involved.
23 March 2010
Buyer beware!
The season is now in full flow, the snow has gone and that little bit of sunshine makes us all feel better.
28 January 2010
12 October 2009
Nice to sea you, to see you twice...
It's been another busy month in the shop since my last blog, ok I know it's almost two months but I'm still getting over the excitement of meeting Mary Portas!!
September is when all of the wedding world descends on Harrogate to do all our main buying for the following season. It's a great chance to catch up with old friends and make new ones. There really are some fantastic new styles around for next year and we're really excited to be adding the Linea Raffaelli range of wedding dresses to the occasion wear that we already stock. They should be here in December, a nice early Xmas present!
After the whirlwind that is Harrogate we had a stand at The National Wedding Show at Earls Court. I have to say that although the show is so busy 16,000 people in 4 days, I really enjoy it and when at the end of the day you've had no food or drink (worse still no wee!) you do have a great satisfaction at seeing so many happy brides bagging a bargain and we've had some really lovely reviews from brides that bought their dresses at the London show.
At the show we met a bride who probably had the worst dilemma for any bride. I could see a girl and her mum looking through the dresses and they were looking at a particular style. I asked if she wanted to try the dress on and she then told me her story. She is getting married next year in May and has ordered a beautiful lace Essense dress for the wedding. Her fiance is being an usher at a friends wedding three weeks before, and yes, you've guessed it, the bride has the same dress!!!! That has to be a brides worst nightmare so she had the awful task of trying to find another dress or wear the dress that the groom and lots of mutual friends would have seen only three weeks before. In the end she bought a beautiful Suzanne Neville dress and the girls who were working for 'wedding ideas' magazine helped her to decide. I felt so sorry for her because she was in such a difficult position, what else could she do?
Back in the shop its still been really busy and the menswear is going from strength to strength. Last week we had a bridal party in, where the groom is a sea captain and he is wearing his dress uniform, he brought it in to try on so we could check that the rest of the bridal party could choose something that would tie in. He looked so handsome in his uniform with gold buttons and gold braid stitched all on the cuffs and the white hat. I commented on how smart he looked and said "Wow! A real sea captain." His fiance piped up "More like captain birds eye!".
Our lovely Rachel who was one of our Saturday girls while she was at college doing her design degree has just landed herself a job with the Strictly Come Dancing team and this week she made jewellery and head pieces, we are all so proud of her and can't wait for our wedding shop group invite to go and see the show, all those sequins, we'd be in our element!
Nicola Garton
www.theweddingshop.co.uk
September is when all of the wedding world descends on Harrogate to do all our main buying for the following season. It's a great chance to catch up with old friends and make new ones. There really are some fantastic new styles around for next year and we're really excited to be adding the Linea Raffaelli range of wedding dresses to the occasion wear that we already stock. They should be here in December, a nice early Xmas present!
After the whirlwind that is Harrogate we had a stand at The National Wedding Show at Earls Court. I have to say that although the show is so busy 16,000 people in 4 days, I really enjoy it and when at the end of the day you've had no food or drink (worse still no wee!) you do have a great satisfaction at seeing so many happy brides bagging a bargain and we've had some really lovely reviews from brides that bought their dresses at the London show.
At the show we met a bride who probably had the worst dilemma for any bride. I could see a girl and her mum looking through the dresses and they were looking at a particular style. I asked if she wanted to try the dress on and she then told me her story. She is getting married next year in May and has ordered a beautiful lace Essense dress for the wedding. Her fiance is being an usher at a friends wedding three weeks before, and yes, you've guessed it, the bride has the same dress!!!! That has to be a brides worst nightmare so she had the awful task of trying to find another dress or wear the dress that the groom and lots of mutual friends would have seen only three weeks before. In the end she bought a beautiful Suzanne Neville dress and the girls who were working for 'wedding ideas' magazine helped her to decide. I felt so sorry for her because she was in such a difficult position, what else could she do?
Back in the shop its still been really busy and the menswear is going from strength to strength. Last week we had a bridal party in, where the groom is a sea captain and he is wearing his dress uniform, he brought it in to try on so we could check that the rest of the bridal party could choose something that would tie in. He looked so handsome in his uniform with gold buttons and gold braid stitched all on the cuffs and the white hat. I commented on how smart he looked and said "Wow! A real sea captain." His fiance piped up "More like captain birds eye!".
Our lovely Rachel who was one of our Saturday girls while she was at college doing her design degree has just landed herself a job with the Strictly Come Dancing team and this week she made jewellery and head pieces, we are all so proud of her and can't wait for our wedding shop group invite to go and see the show, all those sequins, we'd be in our element!
Nicola Garton
www.theweddingshop.co.uk
14 August 2009
Prêt-à-Portas
This time of year is really crazy and as soon as the school holidays come around it seems to make us extra busy. Having said this every time I ask a bride if they're a teacher they say no. Halfway through serving a bride I happened to ask if she was a teacher and she said "No, I'm a journalist with Wedding Ideas magazine!" She was so lovely and settled on a gorgeous new Pronovias dress. I felt like I'd been secret shoppered!
So many of our beautiful brides have got married recently, Debbie, Jodie, Karen and Louise who both had our Groomswear. Louise was married at the Town Hall and her reception was two doors down from our shop at The Lemon Tree. We saw a bridal car arrive outside and when she stepped out she looked breathtaking, the groom looked good too! It was like watching royalty.
We are having a Jenny Packham designer day on Saturday the 19th September, so if you like Jenny Packham dresses you'll want to book early to avoid disappointment. We'll have an extended collection plus special offers on that day.
Last month I received an email from a bride who got married several years ago, she said that she hoped I'd remembered her, and always called herself the "mad woman" and I knew exactly who she was. At the time she had just found out she was pregnant and was absolutely ecstatic, she thought the chance for children had passed her by and we were all so pleased for her. Sadly, shortly after this she lost the baby, it was devastating. She said that since the wedding and losing her baby she had developed breast cancer, and was taking the drug Herceptin. She told me how in her darkest moments she had remembered all the happy times she had spent with us choosing her dress and having all her fittings, and it had helped her through. I was so touched to think that after so many years and after all she'd been through we had given her such special memories and that she had taken the time to let me know how she was feeling, it was very humbling.
August is our buying time for all of the Spring/Summer 2010 mother of the bride collections. It's really exciting to see all the new designs, we have taken on some new labels including Luis Civit and Marchello, as well as revisiting our firm favourites Linea Raffaelli and Paule Vasseur. They're all amazing and its so exciting you just want to have them in your shop NOW! All you mums out there are in for a real treat.
In between appointments just behind Oxford Circus where all the fashion houses are, we have our favourite little cafe where we always stop for lunch, delicious Ciabatta and quick and easy when your in a hurry, not at all glamorous, imagine my surprise when I looked around and saw Natasha Kaplinsky was sitting there drinking a coffee. No sooner had I said to Lesley "there's Natasha Kaplinsky sitting over there" when Mary Portas walked in!!!!!
I couldn't believe it, she was sitting right in front of me. I couldn't stop myself, and went over to her and told her that I owned a bridal shop and that we were all devoted fans of her Mary Queen of Shops programs and thought she was an inspiration to all of us. I asked her if she would autograph one of our shop brochures and she did! She asked my name and wrote me a personalised message! I couldn't stop shaking I was so excited, what a fantastic lady, I texted everyone I knew and it was only my Dad that said "Who's Mary Portas?". You gotta laugh!
So many of our beautiful brides have got married recently, Debbie, Jodie, Karen and Louise who both had our Groomswear. Louise was married at the Town Hall and her reception was two doors down from our shop at The Lemon Tree. We saw a bridal car arrive outside and when she stepped out she looked breathtaking, the groom looked good too! It was like watching royalty.
We are having a Jenny Packham designer day on Saturday the 19th September, so if you like Jenny Packham dresses you'll want to book early to avoid disappointment. We'll have an extended collection plus special offers on that day.
Last month I received an email from a bride who got married several years ago, she said that she hoped I'd remembered her, and always called herself the "mad woman" and I knew exactly who she was. At the time she had just found out she was pregnant and was absolutely ecstatic, she thought the chance for children had passed her by and we were all so pleased for her. Sadly, shortly after this she lost the baby, it was devastating. She said that since the wedding and losing her baby she had developed breast cancer, and was taking the drug Herceptin. She told me how in her darkest moments she had remembered all the happy times she had spent with us choosing her dress and having all her fittings, and it had helped her through. I was so touched to think that after so many years and after all she'd been through we had given her such special memories and that she had taken the time to let me know how she was feeling, it was very humbling.
August is our buying time for all of the Spring/Summer 2010 mother of the bride collections. It's really exciting to see all the new designs, we have taken on some new labels including Luis Civit and Marchello, as well as revisiting our firm favourites Linea Raffaelli and Paule Vasseur. They're all amazing and its so exciting you just want to have them in your shop NOW! All you mums out there are in for a real treat.
In between appointments just behind Oxford Circus where all the fashion houses are, we have our favourite little cafe where we always stop for lunch, delicious Ciabatta and quick and easy when your in a hurry, not at all glamorous, imagine my surprise when I looked around and saw Natasha Kaplinsky was sitting there drinking a coffee. No sooner had I said to Lesley "there's Natasha Kaplinsky sitting over there" when Mary Portas walked in!!!!!
I couldn't believe it, she was sitting right in front of me. I couldn't stop myself, and went over to her and told her that I owned a bridal shop and that we were all devoted fans of her Mary Queen of Shops programs and thought she was an inspiration to all of us. I asked her if she would autograph one of our shop brochures and she did! She asked my name and wrote me a personalised message! I couldn't stop shaking I was so excited, what a fantastic lady, I texted everyone I knew and it was only my Dad that said "Who's Mary Portas?". You gotta laugh!
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